You may think that Dr. Doolittle is all work and no play.  However, in addition to talking to your animals, she regularly talks to her horses, Paramount and Atalanta.  Paramount is a gray Oldenburg gelding standing 16 hands tall that she rode in the Adult Amateur Hunter Division of various Texas Hunter-Jumper Association and American Horse Show Association horse shows.

Atalanta, named after the woman in Greek mythology that was a famous runner, huntress and wrestler, is a 16.3 hand chestnut Hanoverian mare.  Dr. Doolittle rides Atalanta in certain Jumper Divisions at THJA and ASHA horse shows.

For more videos of Dr. Doolittle riding visit her YouTube Channel.

Her interest in horses began as a child when she would spend summers at her grandfather’s farm in eastern Washington State.  She would go on trail rides in the foothills and when she got older and more experienced on a horse, she would ride with her “grampa” to vaccinate and castrate the cattle.

After quite a few years of asking Santa for a pony, she finally got a pony and then a horse.  She learned more about horsemanship and riding by participating in her local 4-H Club and Pony Club.  Western style horse shows began her other “career”; however, soon thereafter she became more interested in jumping her horse.  Unfortunately, no one in her family knew about this type of riding, so her mother found a book on English riding and began to give her lessons.  As she progressed, she received formal lessons from a trainer and eventually began to participate in English horse shows.

This love affair with horses was interrupted by eight years of college and veterinary school; however, several years after beginning her real career as a veterinarian, she began to re-kindle her interest in riding, especially English jumping.  As the years passed and her riding skills improved, she began to compete very seriously in her division.  By early in the year 2000 she decided to make that “her year” and try to win decisively.  With lots of help from Paramount, they were the Texas Hunter-Jumper Association and the American Horse Show Association Zone VII (Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Arkansas and Kansas) Champion in the Adult Amateur Hunter 36 and Over Division, won numerous other awards for the year and ranked 10^th in the Ariat National Adult Medal Masters Award.

She continues to compete regularly, and has spent many of her weekends in Tucson, Arizona at the 2002 and 2003 Arizona Winter Circuit horse shows. In 2002 she was the Circuit Champion in the Adult Amateur Hunter 36 and Over Division and in 2003 was the Reserve Circuit Champion in the same division.

In 2006 Dr. Doolittle acquired Atalanta and began training her and then riding her in Adult Jumper Division. Jumper classes are based on a numerical score determined only by whether the horse attempts the obstacle, clears it and finishes the course in the allotted time. Dr. Doolittle currently jumps in the 3’3″ to 3’6″ division and tries to compete at least once a month.